amj12

yea u of c pays up to 36/hr but thats by not taking any kind of incentives, so no insurance, holiday, vacation or anything like that

Stop worrying about it. I think alot of the senior nurses forget they were you at one point. Take it with a grain of salt. Learn as much as you can during school and do your best. I never once worked as a assistant or anything and I had no problem in nursing school. You'll pick it up fast in school so don'tfret and goodluck!!!

What is your nurse to patient ratio? Do you have mandatory overtime? If you're continuing your education: How willing are you to work around a school schedule? How long is the orientation period?

No. Once you take the NCLEX you should never have to take it again. You have to fill out an application for IL and assuming you have met all the criteria you will be recognized in IL as a registered nurse with a valid license

Maybe the student just lacked confidence. As a new grad, I know in school even when I knew how to do something I still lacked the confidence at times b/c what student wants to screw something up?!!? They may have done it one or more times before, but in that particular setting was just a little nervous to do it on their own.

I live in Northwest Indiana and I know the Ivy Tech's up this way have a very poor reputation. Nurses who work w/their students or their graduates talk about how poorly prepared they are. So just because their NCLEX pass rate may be high doesn't mean it is a solid program preparing nurses to be nurses once the RN is behind their name.

Thanks. I know that I do know stuff. I wouldn't have graduated w/my stellar gpa otherwise , but in the relativity of nursing I still have so much to learn. Do I feel prepared? Absolutely. Am I still terrified of all the nurses out there that have been working for years and have already mastered the simple things that may take me an extra two minutes to do? You betcha. Being in the real world doing nursing now gives me the opportunity to take everything I learned (even those dreaded careplans we ALL hated doing in school) and put it to good use. It allows you to refine your assessment skills because now you are doing it on a more regular basis, gives you the opportunity to gain confidence in talking with doctors, and ultimately gives you the experience to be more comfortable in what you are doing. I feel like they say you learn so much in your first year not because nursing school is failing to properly prepare us, but because now you are doing this and you are seeing things you may not get the opportunity to see in school (i.e. procedures, diesease processes, cultures, and so on). Plus like nursemike said you get to learn from all of your colleagues b/c each one has something to offer.

I agree with the poster above. There were countless times I would prep the night before clinical to go in the next day and suprise my patient was discharged/transferred. Then I would have to do a quick once over the new pts. chart so I atleast had some idea of what was going on. Another thing, no matter how prepared we are when finishing nursing school the MAJORITY of every nurses learning comes from that first year out in the real world. Is it scary to think?!? Heck yea it is. I start my first job as an RN tomorrow and I'm terrified knowing that although my clinicals prepared me I basically know nothing b/c my learning is just beginning. There is so much to teach that it is impossible for a nursing program to teach you everything. So instead they give you the fundamentals and a hopefully solid foundation on which to build from once you have the RN behind your name.

You are definately not alone. I start my first job next week in hem/onc pediatrics and to say I'm terrified is an under statement. Just keep in mind you're clinical instructors felt you were competent enough to continue through nursing school and eventually graduate. You know how to do an assessment, which is the most fundamental part of nursing, everything else will come in due time. We can and will be successful in nursing! Good luck!!!

I'm not sure about this. I would think if you did do something like that it would put alot of undue stress on yourself as you would be studying for the NCLEX which drains you of everything as it is very hard on the nerves and studying for your tests in school as well. School is draining in itself during that last semester, adding the NCLEX studying during it would be a lot to take on. I would think if the hospital was that interested in you they would be willing to start you on a new nurse orientation once they know you have passed, no matter the date. Good luck w/whatever you decide!

I also love peds. I officially start working next week but I did my peds rotation at the childrens hospital where I was hired and I had such a phenomenal experience. It's not just that you can make a difference in a child's life, but think of how much of a difference they make in yours. I also find that I relate alot better to kids b/c they say what they mean and mean what they say. Everything is black and white for them. It's also easier for me to move children as I am a very small person (to paint a picture I could easily pass for 12 and every adult in the hospital would ask me if I was even old enough to drive..my response: Not only am I old enough to drive, but I'm old enough to drive you to the liquor store and buy you some scotch! that always got a laugh)

I actually got it in a week. The recruiter for the hospital I was hired at knew someone down there and made a call and the contact pulled and licensed me. I realize this had everything to do w/who I knew. Also, My friend received hers in 3 weeks. So I think it could vary depending on the time of the year and how much they have going on

I'm sure I'm late in responding but here are questions I asked at my interviews: 1. How long is the preceptorship? Can it be extended depending on the individual? 2. What is the nurse to patient ratio? (It is VERY important to know this) 3. How willing are you to work around school schedules? (this is important if you are getting a BSN or for grad school) 4. Is there mandatory overtime? 5. Always end the interview asking where do you go from here. when shoudl you expect to hear back? (this lets them know you are thinking ahead)

Its not going to matter whether you apply while you're an LPN or not. I HIGHLY recommend applying to take the IL boards. They are notoriously slow at endorsing licenses. The only reason mine only took a week is b/c my recruiter knew someone down there and got in contact w/them and pulled some strings. Otherwise it would have probably been a nightmare, seeing as how my app. sat for a week. I had a friend who applied and it took over a month before hers was processed. Had I known what a headache it was I would've paid an extra $200 to take the IL boards (I had already sent everything into IN when I got my job offer). Plus IL requires so much more for their application as you must get fingerprints done and if you are being endorsed you must pay a fee for them to look you up on the NURSYS database. I cannot stress enough how much easier it would be to just take the IL state boards. Good luck in nursing school :)

I agree that you need to take a break. At this point you still are upset about failing so starting to study will not help b/c you're not in a good state of mind. Take a break and when you get your confidence back start studying again.